Franchise Now spotlights Dawn Perry’s insights on aligning local marketing, AI, and operations for scalable franchise success.
Franchise Now recently featured an in-depth conversation with Dawn Perry, Chief Brand Officer at CertaPro Painters, on Franchise Marketing Radio. As the franchising world continues to evolve under the pressures of consumer behavior, technology, and AI, Perry’s leadership offers a blueprint for how marketing can stay relevant while driving measurable business outcomes. Tune into the full conversation and glean further insights at https://blog.franchisenow.ai/post/certapros-brand-strategy-unpacked-insights-from-dawn-perry
Perry’s professional journey spans several high-impact industries—from her early work in direct response advertising at People Magazine and Scholastic to executive leadership roles at Avis Budget Group and ERA Real Estate. This breadth of experience allows her to bring a dynamic and multi-dimensional view to CertaPro Painters, one of the leading home services franchises in North America. Her core belief is that marketing must bridge national brand integrity with local entrepreneur empowerment, ensuring franchisees are equipped to own their voice within a trusted brand framework.
CertaPro’s marketing model reflects this philosophy. It’s a full-funnel, hybrid strategy that ensures consistent visibility through branded and unbranded paid search, LSAs, and SEO content, while also empowering franchisees with tools for assertive local marketing—such as wrapped vehicles, community events, door hangers, and yard signs. This combination allows the brand to remain top-of-mind digitally and within neighborhoods across the country.
A standout topic in the interview was how the brand addressed online lead abandonment. Like many service-based franchises, CertaPro noticed a trend where users began online estimate forms but did not complete them. Rather than let those leads go cold, the corporate team developed a system that captures the partial information and routes it directly to franchisees. This innovation dramatically improved conversion rates and further demonstrated the value of aligning marketing operations with field-level engagement. Learn more about the company’s approach and services at https://certapro.com.
Perry also elaborated on the importance of content-driven engagement. In an age where authenticity and personalization drive consumer loyalty, CertaPro encourages franchisees to humanize their outreach—by spotlighting team members, celebrating community involvement, and sharing local customer experiences. Social platforms, email marketing, and even print materials are optimized for these local narratives, which create lasting brand relationships.
The discussion naturally turned to AI and automation—two forces reshaping how marketers plan and execute campaigns. Perry emphasized that while AI has value in streamlining content creation, enhancing personalization, and supporting data analysis, brands must maintain strong governance around its use. At CertaPro, AI is a support layer—not a creative engine. Strategy, storytelling, and message integrity still come from people who understand the brand.
Additionally, Perry touched on the franchise development lifecycle. She noted that recruitment, onboarding, and long-term franchisee success must be tied to transparent and consistent messaging. From discovery day presentations to digital recruitment campaigns, the marketing and franchise development teams at CertaPro work closely to ensure alignment—setting clear expectations and delivering on them through comprehensive support systems.
The episode concluded with a call for deeper collaboration within the franchising industry. Perry suggested that franchise marketing leaders across brands would benefit from more structured forums and think tanks, particularly as AI, media, and consumer habits continue to evolve rapidly. Franchising thrives on community—and sharing marketing best practices across systems could elevate the performance of the entire sector.
Franchise Now continues to showcase these leadership perspectives as part of its mission to educate and empower modern franchisors. To explore the full ecosystem of tools, insights, and AI-powered growth strategies from Franchise Now, visit https://franchisenow.ai.
